The creation of an ostomy (stoma) is the therapy for many suffers of diseases or injury of the gastrointestinal or urinary tract. An ostomy is the rerouting of the tract through the abdominal wall to outside the patient's body. Once a stoma has been created, the patient may need to use a device worn on the body for capturing or containing stomal body waste. This has traditionally been done with an open bag or pouch attached to the body with adhesive patches or constricting belts. Such a pouch collects body waste exuding uncontrolled through the stoma. However, the wearing of such a pouch, which may be necessarily relatively large to accommodate the uncontrolled discharge of body waste, may be an embarrassing experience for many ostomates. The use of such a pouch may require significant changes to a person's public and personal activities.
A controlled evacuation appliance offers the potential for an ostomate to return to some form of normality. The appliance is typically used to block the stoma mouth, in order to retain the body waste temporarily inside the tract. The appliance is deactivatable and/or removable manually when the ostomate desires to discharge the body waste from the stoma. However, there are many practical and challenging difficulties associated with implementing a cost efficient, yet effective and comfortable appliance.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,869 describes an ostomy pouch including a plug for blocking the stoma to provide controlled evacuation. However, in order to discharge body waste, the ostomate has to open the pouch, reach his or hand into the pouch interior, and directly remove the plug. Such a pouch has hygiene concerns, because it requires the user (i) to reach into the pouch interior, and (ii) to touch the plug itself, neither of which is likely to be hygienically clean. Opening the pouch may also release odors from the interior. Finally, such a pouch is not well suited for less-dextrous ostomates.
Accordingly, it is desirable to have a controlled evacuation ostomy appliance that is effective, comfortable, cost efficient, easy to use and hygienic.